Times wires
Friday, March 25, 2011
Montoya cruises to pole in Fontana
Juan Pablo Montoya will start on the pole for his 150th career NASCAR race.
Montoya had the fastest time in Friday's qualifying at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., hitting 184.653 mph on the 2-mile oval. The former Formula One driver starts Sunday's 400-mile race on the front row next to Denny Hamlin and is looking for his first win on an oval after earning his sixth career pole.
Montoya has two Sprint Cup wins, both on road courses. He hasn't qualified well this season but has two top-10 finishes, including a third at Las Vegas.
Stewart-Haas off to quick start
Tony Stewart doesn't usually hit high gear until the summer, and Ryan Newman has a similar track record. This season, they're trying something new: running up front from the start.
The Stewart-Haas Racing teammates are ahead of schedule through the first four races, tied for third in the Sprint Cup series standings with 138 points each, 12 behind leader Kurt Busch.
"It's definitely a good thing," Stewart said. "I don't know if you can look at it as a telltale sign of what our season's going to be like, but it's always nice to get off to a good start. You don't feel like you're playing catch-up right off the bat."
Elsewhere
TRG Motorsports is switching to Ford after a three-year stint with Chevrolet. The team's No. 71 Sprint Cup car will switch to Ford Fusions supplied by Roush Fenway Racing, with engines provided by Roush/Yates Engines, owner Kevin Buckley said. The move will be made at the April 9 race at Texas Motor Speedway. Former road racer and NASCAR rookie Andy Lally drove the No. 71 the first four races and is slated to be behind the wheel for Sunday's race at Auto Club Speedway.
Sprint Cup points
Through four of 36 races. The top 10 drivers plus two wild cards (based on wins) through 26 races make the Chase for the Championship.
Driver Pts. Back
Kurt Busch 150—
Carl Edwards 149 1
Tony Stewart 138 12
Ryan Newman 138 12
Paul Menard 136 14
Kyle Busch 133 17
J. Johnson 130 20
Juan Montoya 126 24
D. Earnhardt Jr. 124 26
Mark Martin 123 27
Martin Truex 123 27
Up next
Auto Club 400, 3 p.m. Sunday, Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, Calif. TV: Ch. 13
Number of the day
9 Drivers who have competed in all four Sprint Cup races this season without a top-10 finish. Eight of them are past winners: Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Bill Elliott, Robby Gordon, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Jamie McMurray and David Reutimann. David Ragan, who doesn't have a win, has the highest points position of those without a top-10 finish: 20th.
Number of the day II
24.6 Paul Menard's average finish in his first 147 Cup starts. Menard has an average finish of 10.8 through the first four Sprint Cup races this season and is fifth in the standings.